Amazon’s newest film, Jackpot!, featuring Awkwafina and John Cena, is officially available on Prime Video. The action comedy marks the first time they have worked together on a movie and is Cena’s second project for the streaming service this year.
Jackpot! is set in the future in Los Angeles, California, where a special raffle called the “Grand Lottery” offers a multi-billion dollar prize with the rule that citizens can kill the winner to get the ticket. The winner is forced to survive until sundown to collect their earnings.
Awkwafina plays Katie Kim, a struggling actress who wins the lottery and gets protection from Cena’s character, Noel Cassidy, to survive the hunt.
The film is Cena’s second comedy after his performance in Ricky Stanicky earlier this year. Although the movie wasn’t well received by himself and other critics, it scored 72% on Rotten Tomatoes. Jackpot! has garnered less universal enthusiasm so far.
I watched the film after its release to share my review of it. After sharing my thoughts on different aspects of Jackpot!, I’ll give an overall rating between 1 and 10.
A Promising Concept With Poor Results
The best way to describe Jackpot! is that it’s like if you were to combine the 2010 film Lottery Ticket and The Purge franchise. The plot of a woman forced into a situation where she wins a life-changing opportunity but must survive murderers looking to take it away is interesting. That can make for a good horror movie or a fascinating dark comedy. Unfortunately, Jackpot! is an action comedy with jokes that fall flat and action that is just okay.
The first 25 minutes of the movie set the tone for how illogical the plot will be for viewers intrigued by the premise. As Jackpot! continues, it completely unravels into a ridiculous and forgettable film. For example, why the “Grand Lottery” was created in the first place makes no sense and isn’t explained. At one point in the movie, Cena’s character calls for help to launch a “Phone Strike” that blows up all the cell phones of himself and his partner’s pursuers. These are just some moments that made me scratch my head in confusion.
The action scenes are okay but could be more memorable. The humor is painfully bad, as Awkwafina and Cena try desperately to make you crack a smile, which fails more often than not. The lack of delivered jokes and the action that isn’t eye-catching enough leads to a tough movie to sit through over an hour and 30 minutes.
John Cena & Awkwafina Performance
The WWE superstar has become a good actor who can be goofy and charming to make fans endeared to him. Jackpot! features Cena mainly in a more subdued role than in past films and has Awkwafina play more of an over-the-top character. The creative decision resulted in the most lackluster performance from the 13-time WWE Champion in recent memory.
It doesn’t help the film that the dialogue is poor. Awkwafina tries to find jokes by reacting to the zany situations that she is involved in throughout Jackpot! This leads to a lot of shrieking and so many jokes that can make a viewer roll their eyes.
While the comedy doesn’t work, Cena and Awkwafina have moments that show what they could’ve done with a better script. Both have serious parts in the movie that are good. For instance, there is a scene between them where the leading actress talks about her troubles as a childhood actress and how her father stole from her. Cena has a moment where he gets to show his acting chops with a more dramatic scene as he shares his character’s motivation for helping Awkwafina in the film. It’s points in the movie like this that show how talented they both are but have the challenge of a bad script.
Show-Stealing Supporting Characters
Although I didn’t get many laughs from Cena or Awkwafina, I did enjoy three characters in the movie. One of them is Simu Liu, who plays Louis Lewis. He acts as a rival to the WWE superstar’s character and the main villain. Liu showcases his charisma and is charming as the bad guy trying to take the lottery ticket from the protagonist.
The other two supporting characters who wowed me were actor Donald Elise Watkins as DJ Donald and actress Ayden Mayeri as Shadi. They are a couple in the movie, and their chemistry is better than Cena’s and Awkwafina’s. Watkins and Mayeri played off each other well and made me chuckle at some of their scenes with the leading actress. The three supporting characters made the Jackpot! more enjoyable than it should’ve been.
Overall Thoughts On Jackpot!
I think Jackpot! results from a film with an interesting plot but lousy execution. The concept may truly be better in another genre than what was intended. In comparison to Ricky Stanicky, Cena in Jackpot! is a waste of his abilities as a comedic actor, and I think the WWE superstar should consider attempting more different roles, including a thriller or a rom-com, for his next film.
Jackpot! isn’t a completely terrible project. However, it remains a forgettable film, making you wish it could’ve been better.
I give Jackpot! a 4 out of 10.